Befimmo completes EUR 110m bond offering

Belgian listed property firm Befimmo has raised EUR 110 mln in an early closing of a public bond offering.

The bond has a gross annual coupon of 4.75% and matures in 2015.

The issue was launched last Thursday in Belgium and in Luxembourg. It was initially planned to run to 27 December, with a minimum target of EUR 75 mln.

The proceeds will be used for general financing needs, the company said in a statement.

Fortis Bank and KBC Bank were joint lead managers and joint bookrunners for the placement of the bonds. Dexia Banque Belgique, Banque Degroof and Petercam were co-lead managers for the placement of the bonds.

This is the second bond issue by Befimmo this year. In April the company raised EUR 162 mln with the issue of a six-year bond carrying a coupon of 4.5%. The placements are part of the company's efforts to diversify its financing sources at a time when bank lending is scarce.

'It is not surprising to see Befimmo continuing to diversify its sources of finances,' analysts at Exane BNP Paribas wrote in a note to clients. 'Belgian 10-year bonds are currently trading at 4.4% (versus 2.3% for Germany and 3.2% for France), suggesting that bonds could be a cheaper source of financing for Befimmo than bank debt.'

Earlier this week, Franco-Dutch giant Unibail Rodamco also executed a EUR 500 mln bond placement offering a coupon of 3.875%. The issuance was three times covered, with the order book reaching EUR 1.5 bn.